Before the Reunion
by Bio-Major Agent85
Summary: Horrible favors have great rewards as a rookie Hunk is allowed to join the elite and battle-hardened Alpha Team, but the rest of the team question Hunk's motives as they are sent into the territory of a rival company to rescue a very important hostage.
1. Chapter 1

Before The Reunion

Before The Reunion

_November 13__th__, __1988_

The rhythmic rotations of whirling blades of an idling helicopter echoed like thumps from rushing water. The whooshing noise was swift and gentle as it rushed through the air. Wind has always been a gentle and smooth being; it's the calmness of nature. Lost in a sea of wind is no different than being lost in an ocean of water, there is a mild peace to it, but it was a peace that could change without warning, becoming violent and deadly. The thumps of the whirling blades came faster and a spin of tortured wind came to pass as the rising helicopter became lost in the ocean of wind and air, disturbing the peace of the calming air. It was humanity's way to torment nature to the point that it turned against.

Tranquility had been trapped away from the coiling streams of violent air; within the military transport helicopter a small cabin housed people that weren't looking for tranquility or peace. Lacing shadows glazed through the darkness of the cabin and over the faces of its six occupants. The darkness housed over their already harden faces, most of them had seen more than what the dark could hide from humanity's simple eyes. Their eyes were the property of the Umbrella Corporation, whose secrets were the responsibility of those same eyes that they owned. They were Umbrella's must trusted and one of the major reasons why Umbrella's research has been able to reach the levels it has. They were Umbrella's children, their thieves, and their soldiers; they were Umbrella's Special Forces.

"Drop zone ETA in six minutes." The voice was rash and harsh, quiet with a sense of boredom behind it as the pilot of the helicopter spoke over the intercom.

"Be Ready!" The order came like a cautionary growl from the man only known as SilverFang, the leader of Alpha Team.

The call from their leader wasn't meant for them to even move an inch from their secured seats, their bodies were already primed enough, it was their minds that needed to be sharp and clear. Most of them were like SilverFang, their nerves conditioned to the point that they had complete control over them. All of them had served together through plenty of missions to feel comfortable enough to do anything as long as they were a team. Like most teams in the Special Forces, they had formed a bond that could never be broken, but a wedge could still be driven through that bond and led to the one thing that they feared. Among the Special Forces teams, they had certain taboos, ones that they if allowed would cause certain death. Alpha Team had made sure that none of these taboos had befallen them, which had they believe is the reason why they have had a 73 survival rating for their team. Though, by special orders from Oswell E. Spencer, Alpha Team had been forced to take on a new recruit, a taboo that made them all uncomfortable. They knew that death was just waiting for them.

"Hey fresh meat, you look a little too tender for the grinder that we are about to go into." Cameron's face was like a clutched fist, tense with rage and hardened with seizing bone. His distaste for the new recruit was a bitter one.

The new recruit's face didn't even change from its harsh expression as his brooding eyes stared right back into Cameron's. He didn't care about feelings or emotions; they had no merit on the battlefield. It was emotions that fueled the reason to kill or be killed. But they weren't here to kill; they were here to complete a mission. They were tools that were being used by Umbrella and tools didn't have emotions and they were always able to complete their job.

"I don't think any piece of shit with a codename like Hunk, will be able to survive in the type of hell that we have been through. Make sure of it, Hunk, none of us are going to save your sorry ass. I rather you die than you being the reason the whole team gets slaughtered. Tell me you limp dog dick, what did you do to get placed on Alpha Team without even a single mission under your belt?" Cameron's words were filled with disrespect and mistrust. Suspicion had grown in his head when he heard how Hunk was able to join his team, that Lord Spencer requested that Hunk become a member on his word. Cameron thought it very strange that a lowly grunt had leeway from the owner of Umbrella. Cameron had never even seen what Spencer looked like and he had been working for Umbrella for the last four years. Something wasn't right and Cameron didn't want to be dead because of it.

A chuckle of amusement came from Weaver as he listened to the whole conversation. Cameron and him believed the same thing about new recruits. He also held suspicious about Hunk and how a 24-year old was fit enough to join the top ranking Special Forces team without even a single kill. There was something that was being hidden from them.

"If only I die or the whole team, that is of no importance…" Hunk's youthful and clean face came from the grim shadows that banded around him as he spoke. His eyes were silence as they were reflected in Cameron's. Hunk didn't care about the others and what they thought; he was only there for one reason and one reason only.

"Suit up!" SilverFang's tongue sliced through the air with his words like a dull knife, breaking up the hostility that was seething behind him.

A dance of arms and fingers came over their respected uniforms inspecting every inch that covered their skin; they were dressed for protection from physical and biological harm. Their bodies were clad in greenish gray jumpsuits able to absorb heavy amounts of liquids before soaking through, which are just the first layer of their outfit, fitting easily against their sizeable bulk. A secondary layer of armor came in the form of thick and knobby knee pads, elbow pads, a contrasting dark green bulletproof vests that was outfitted with hefty and bulky shoulder pads, and broad, padded black gloves that covered over the middle and ring fingers. Draping hands, pulled over a masking cloth, attached to a blacken front that slid over their faces. Two large round black extensions horned outward, forming a sort of sinister mouth. They were held on to by a hard plastic that molded into a smooth surface that was molded around their the structure of their faces, but held no features, creating a detachment from the comfortableness of the human face. Glinting plastic lens came rounded largely from the eyes of the mask, tiny flicks of flared crimson light tunneled from back of the solid foggy lens that decorated the chemical gas mask with a set of almost demon eyes. A clamping shatterproof greenish gray helmet compressed on to their heads, the last piece of protection that they were granted.

"ETA in 45 seconds!" A breeze of rushing air came from the pilot's mouth as he hollered behind his shoulder.

A sturdy falter of sliding metal came as SilverFang tore open the side door of the cabin of the helicopter. Tense rushes of blasting wind screamed its hatred as it came flowing into the once air-locked compartment. The steam of blanketing air came to a halt as the transport helicopter came into a hovering position, slowly swaying like a rocking chair that had been brushed with an easy gust of wind. The fragrance of the vast forest was a strong one as it wove through the cabin. One's sight was filled with stocks of over grown trees as they matured along the mountain ridge, only known as the Arklay Mountains.

"Cameron, Weaver, Go!" SilverFang gave a quick motion with his finger, not even giving them a glace as he ordered them out of the helicopter.

Tethering lines of rope joined together as they harassed the weight of the two members as they repelled down them, easing and tightening their grips as they paced their fall with their free hand, their other hand tense against the handle of their MP-5 Submachine Guns. Thickening black leather boots sponged against the mucky, sinking mud, a comfort to be on the ground from being confined in the compact of the helicopter. With the release of the rope, Cameron and Weaver surveyed the murky forest for any irregularities that could be hazardous to their mission.

"All Clear!" Cameron transmitted via through his two-way radio.

"Gouki, Ricco, Let's Go!" SilverFang let the words burst from his mouth as he stood like a stone statue next to the open door issuing his orders.

Flexing coils of tight and straining rope fluttered slightly again before they stiffened as the two cascading bodies of weight slipped down. Grips loosened from the rope as Gouki and Ricco jumped from the weaving rope as they came close to the group. Safely on the ground, Ricco and Gouki take up a defensive position at the back of Cameron and Weaver's position, creating a protective circle for their leader to jump safely into.

"Hunk, Go!" SilverFang gives his command as his fingers laced against the stiff rope, pulling his body from the gravity of the helicopter and into the thinness of the air.

Hunk's shape propelled through the strips of air as he swayed his body with the movements of the rope, his grip relaxing as he came nearer to the ground where the rest of the team already had landed. With a final push, Hunk shoved his weight hard, picking up a hefty amount of speed as the rope burned against his glove before his dropping feet slammed into the wet dirt below. With a flex of muscle, Hunk stood up, his finger tapping against the trigger of his gun waiting for his first set of orders.

The turbulence of swirling air and wind lifted away as the transport helicopter skimmed the tops of the trees before reaching the faded horizon, coming under the disappearance of the shimmering light. All that was left now was the quietness of the forest, the coolness that only belonged to the growth of life that birthed from that same quietness. The Arklay Mountains were known for their serenity, an easy cover for things that should be kept hidden. This was a place with no roads and plenty of trees to provide enough cover from any passing aircrafts, they were too deep to be bothered by a society that didn't want to know went on behind close doors.

Within a heavy brush of trees, walls of massing gray concrete had been formed into a solid building, spanning nearly two hundred feet wide. It was an odd looking compound, devoid of any markings to help hide it even further. To a normal eye, it looked nothing more than an oversized fallout shelter, simply designed with nothing different than square walls and a flat roof. The light of the sun came against its face, with no windows for it to intrude upon. There was nothing more than a single heavy metal door, large enough to fit a truck into; it was the only entrance to the mysterious complex. This building was meant to never been seen by eyes that weren't meant to.

"Any activity?" SilverFang easily whispered next to Cameron's ear as both of them kneeled in a swarm of overgrown bushes, their dark combat suits blending into the heavily green foliage.

"I haven't seen anything as of yet. No guards, no trucks, no activity what so ever. Though, I still don't think that we should just go up and knock on the front door." Cameron read from his thoughts, his eyes never leaving the steel entrance of the compound.

"It may be a trap, a false sense of security." Gouki questioned, knowing that silence always lead to something bad.

"I say we just go in. We can handle whatever comes at us." A strong hiss spilled from Ricco's mouth. He was never one that liked to wait for the action to come to him; reconnaissance was the one thing that he hated about this job.

"No, let's wait to see what Weaver founds. If there is another way in, he will be able to found it." SilverFang said as his eyes spread wide across the outreaches of the compound, watching if the forest was looking back at them.

"Where do you think they are keeping him?" The question was leaked out of Cameron's mouth, his words vague since they concerned the mission's main objective.

"It's hard to say, Umbrella doesn't know anything about this other company. All they know is, that known enough to be able to kidnap one of Umbrella's top scientists and quiet a bit of his experiments in order to get information on the T-Virus. We don't know their plans or how large they really are. They've completely come out of leftfield and taken Umbrella by surprise. Which means I want us to take this mission real easy, nothing flashy. I want by the book protocols." Deep breaths came through SilverFang's gasmask as he addressed information that was only concerning to them.

"What about this scientist that was kidnapped? The only information that we were given about him was just a recent picture. Why weren't we briefed on anything else about him?" Ricco said as he shifted his body towards the other three as they laid kneeling in the brushes, still waiting for their field scout to come back.

"Umbrella thought it was best that we only went in with just an image of the guy, because we aren't looking for anything else besides his face. His bio is of no use for the mission. But the only information I know about him is that he's a 26-year-old researcher and has just taken over Umbrella's top research project and is a high asset for the company. Umbrella won't allow us to return without him, that is if he still is alive." SilverFang's voice was low and muffled as he tried to keep his voice as close to as a whisper as he could.

"He's still alive. They have no reason to kill someone that has something that they want." Hunk's gruff voice rasped from the heavy gas mask.

Splintering snaps of twigs and leaves crunched under heavily placed footsteps, they came from the distance, bounding against the stone like complex. It was the only noise that came from the dead forest. Scuttles of leaves crept and crumpled under prodding feet as they raced through the rustle of noise. The footsteps were filled with information ready to be unloaded. With short and even placed strides, Weaver toddled back to the watching group.

"Did you found anything?" SilverFang let the words lash out fast, even before Weaver was able to get close enough to the group to speak.

"There's a sewer pipe large enough to fit the whole team that leads right into the compound." Weaver gasped out in-between taking in breathes.

Spattering droplets of dirty water ruptured from their foundation as a race of running feet nudging through the sewer pipe echoed through. A rush of flowing water come under their feet like a running stream, an endless surge of freezing water that soaking through their jumpsuits easily. Their movements were quick, their legs marching against the bitter cold water moving in the total darkness, only the rhythmic splatter of water echoing in a loud spiral around the tube of metal that they traveled in.

"How much further?" SilverFang heaved seriously as he kept an even pace as he spoke over his shoulder.

"We should be seeing a ladder or some way up soon and that should be our way in." Weaver screamed the words against the bounds of bouncing water before they reached the front of the group where SilverFang led.

"Wait, hold on. I hear something." The words rushed passed Hunk's halted body as he came to a complete stop. He lowered his head, getting a location on the sound that alerted him.

Empty and open spaced bounded between Hunk and the rest as they treaded ahead, leaving behind the young rookie. Hunk had fallen into his own world, his ears blocking out everything besides the distance sound that intrigued him. It sounded of something familiar, but it was also something that Hunk couldn't figure out. He didn't want to take the risk of it being the enemy sneaking up on their position. Hunk knew that sound was the key on surviving, that was one of the most important things that he remembered from his training, but his in-field skills were still young and not use to the sounds of a environment that he wasn't use to.

"Hunk, on your feet!" The words were turned into no more than a whisper seconds after they left SilverFang's mouth lost against the stronger noise bellowing from the walls of the sewer pipe.

Rising speakers of noise vaulted horribly as it came louder and closer. It was a clear and rushing sound, like a horde of wild animals stampeding in a metal drum. Hunk's eyes slipped back and forth, only creating a blur of synthetic red from his infrared goggles. The blur wobbled violently as the earth came undone around itself. Gripping leather slipped against the watery ground as Hunk's legs were swept from under him. The noise came intensely in Hunk's ears, rupturing his senses with its ghastly scream. A dripping coldness washed over Hunk's body, soaking his muscles in a freezing numbness as his body was carried away. The bursting wash of hurrying water that had swept Hunk off his feet rose again, easily carrying his weight within its own moving body. Hunk's arms reached through the forcing flow, gripping for the invisible bar that he knew wasn't there. His breathes came gurgled in bubbles as the water bathed over his mask, slipping the young Special Force member in the shadows of its mass, taking him back to its dark home.

"Shit, where'd he go?" Gouki vaulted his disgust from his mouth for the missing teammate.

"He's dead. Rookies always die first. No reason to waste time founding his corpse; the mission is what's important." Cameron's voice came with a grin that spread widely cross his hidden face. He was pleased with himself that death had come that fast for the young rookie.

"Fine, we keep moving then." SilverFang directed, even though he knew that the rookie was his responsibility, but the mission always came first.

A dreaded sense came around them as they gracefully walked, the beginning of the mission had already claimed its first life and a young one and they knew that this wouldn't be the last one. The patter of springing water pressed through the bounding echoes as Alpha Team moved forward, leaving behind their newest team member to die poorly. Though, in the void of silence, gurgled moans reverberated gently from behind.


	2. Chapter 2

"Shit, this is going to take awhile to cut through." Heavy breathes gasped from Cameron's mouth as he huffed with his annoyance. His finger pressed against the seal pressure cap that was fitted at the top of the ladder, unable to be opened from his end without a lot of work.

"Just get through it, that's all that I care about." SilverFang calmly addressed as he hovered below Cameron.

Flickers of sparking blue light shimmered from within the darken tunnel that surrounded the ladder, the heading flames of the handheld blowtorch seared into the condensed, reinforced metal that formed the pressure seal that capped the top of the ladder as Cameron began to slowly melt into the first layers of steel.

Tender embers of dying slag sprinkled like a broken showerhead as they fall against SilverFang's helmet and shoulders as he descended down the ladder. The cinders shaded against SilverFang's visor as his foot stepped back into the murky, cold water of the sewers below, the same place that the rest of team waited until the pressure cap had been cut through. Weaver, Ricco, and Gouki stood in a loose circle under the ladder; their forms slacked and relaxed as they waited until they were able to breech through the pressure cap.

"That's a shame about the Rookie, dying like a drowning child in a pool of shit." Weaver chuckled stoutly, amusing himself with his morbid thoughts.

"I really don't think he's dead. We should found out if he is or not." The words came out like a broken spray as Ricco shook his head in disagreement.

"You have to be kidding me. He was swept away by a rush of water nearly the same size of the pipe. He's dead. K.I.A." Weaver's attitude was snarled like that of a wild dog defending its yard.

"I am going to go found out. I have to." Risking tempers stalked through Ricco's body as his legs strutted passed Weaver's watching eyes.

An extending hand came against Ricco's rushing chest, it was firm but gentle. Twisting muscles turned as SilverFang's eyes reached Ricco's halted form as he glaringly looked over his shoulder at the brash soldier, letting his gestures talk for him.

"This isn't like you, SilverFang. Think about it, if he's still alive, what if the enemy gets a hold of him? He knows what we know.

That could impair the mission." Ricco extinguished his thoughts from his anger lips. Annoyed at the forgetfulness of the team and the priority of the mission, Ricco knew that everything had to go perfect for this mission or they could all end up dead.

"Fine, Go. But the rest of the team stays here; I can't risk any more men." SilverFang lowered his arm, allowing Ricco to pass, his eyes fumed with rage as he watched as Ricco broke the mission perimeters that had been set up and at himself for allowing it.

A flock of pushing steps trudged through the same path that they had already marched across before. Ricco was enjoying doing something other than waiting for their entry point to be cut open. He was hoping for some action, something to shoot at, his finger was getting itchy. Founding the dead body of his teammate even seemed a little exciting to Ricco.

The hollow steps of Ricco's prodding feet, echoed through the casing of the pipes, the only noise that traveled through them. A reaching dull moan stretched through the sewer, one that low and quiet, but deep and gurgled. Without the metal drum that it was able to echo upon, it would not even be able to be audible. All life had been drained from it.

"Damn, he's hurt and it sounds bad." Ricco kept his lips low as he whispered to himself.

His legs skated and danced amongst themselves as Ricco bounded through the branching tunnels of the sewer system, watching for the moan, listening to found its location. Ricco's foot waged against the solid metal floor of the pipe, halting his approach as he tenses his body to a strain to hopefully help his ears to hear any sort of sound to found the cheese at the end of this maze. Like a boarding train of noise, a grouping of moans came grossly through the pipe. They reverberated horribly as they trailed around Ricco's open ears. He could hear at least four different voices within the massive collection of groans and an eerie lifelessness that accompanied them.

"What the hell is that? Ricco's body stiffed with bewilderment as he spoke out loud, his voice carrying exactly how he felt.

Creeping steps came against the end of the pipe as it opened into a square cavity that was filled with dirty water at the bottom, with another pipe at the bottom of it that continued the endless of flow of the dirty water. Riddling splashes of water chimed from the pit of grimy water as something thrashed in it. Dozens of dirty fingers reached and grabbed, pulling hard against flesh and muscle as something struggled against their grip. Gorging teeth clamped open as they came close into tearing into a piece of warm flesh.

Holding arms tensed against Hunk's arms and shoulders as they held their prey down, ready to eat their meal. Fighting muscles came through Hunk's arms as he thrashed about, trying to loosen the harden vice that was held on him. His hands were left free and empty, his gun lost within the murky waters below, knocked from his clutch from the extensive struggle. The four dark bodies pressed against Hunk's own as they pushed against the chilly and moist wall of the room. Their roaming and lifeless faces groaned with their mouths wide open, almost locked in that position, only closing, as they got close enough to Hunk's arm or shoulder. Wearing strength left Hunk's body as he resisted against the four assailants as they pulled his arm closer to themselves. There wasn't anything he could do, without the use of his arms, Hunk was easily overpowered and ready to give up. A pale, sagging face lumbered into Hunk's field of vision, the creature's dreary, blankness, creamy white covered eyes locked on to his own through his goggles. A shuddering groan came out of its mouth like vapors lifting from raw sewage, fogging against Hunk's lens.

"Take a mouthful…" The words swung with Hunk's head as he tilted it back and slammed the top of his helmet into the yawning mouth of the diseased man, shattering teeth from rotten gums with the crashing force.

The deranged man's face staggered backwards, bounded to the slumped neck that absorbed the brunt of the force from Hunk's blow. The man's mouth seeped with thicken blood that oozed nearly a blacken crimson as he lurched forward for another bite, not even fazed by the strike from Hunk's armored helmet. Shattering pellets of speeding slag plunged into the squashy flesh of the back of the man's skull, sprawling through its open mouth and impacted against the concert wall behind Hunk's right ear. Another clatter of jingling belts of metal seized with fire rattled against the head of one of the rotten creatures that held tight against Hunk's right arm. Freeing fingers slipped from tensed flesh as the man wilted away from Hunk's forearm. With room to move, the two other beings closed in on Hunk, their dirty fingers scrapping against his shoulders and neck, pulling their meal towards them. Tearing wires pull apart, as Hunk was able to pull himself away from the grasps of the putrid creatures as another vault of impacting bullets splattered in a valley into the optical bone of their skulls. Gusts of spreading blood and skull floated gently from the blossoming pressure that blown from the top of their heads as their bodies slumped with easy movements into the dirty water below.

"Rookie, you ain't going to survive much longer if you can't even handle four infected." Ricco nearly chuckled to himself, glad that he was finally able to kill something and for the fact that Hunk hadn't met an early demise.

"I dropped my gun." Hunk rasped from the back of his throat as he fished through the sewage water for the comfortable handle of his MP-5 Submachine gun. Without even a breath, Hunk was ready to get back to the mission, even after he nearly met death just seconds ago.

"You're just a big bag of zombie feed aren't you? Come on, we have to rejoin the rest of the team." Ricco's tone came off friendly at first, but turned serious and mature, realizing that SilverFang would be preceding onward shortly without them if they didn't get back soon.

"It's odd that there's even infected here. There was no mention of a T-virus leak within the mission orders." Murmuring confusion and questions came from Hunk's mouth as he paced closer to the overhang where Ricco was standing above him.

"That's quick thinking there, rookie, but it has nothing to do with the mission. It's just another obstacle for us to get through in order to do what we came here to do. Here I'll help you up. " Ricco calmly spoke, not even giving much interest into what Hunk was talking about. This wasn't the first time they were faced with the uncontrolled effects of the virus.

Ricco laid his knee to the ground, extending his hand down into the darken gully, reaching for Hunk's hand in the grasp of his fingers. Tensing nerves flared as Ricco's bare fingers clutched against Hunk's extending hand, but fingers alone were not enough to lift up Hunk's stable mass. Straining muscles stressed and broke, stretching far beyond what they were allowed.

"I've got you…" Ricco's words seeped from his mouth slowly.

Their palms clasped around each other's, holding tight as both of their strength met together. A loosen grasp sprung from Hunk's hand, the tautness of Ricco's hand gone, like Hunk was holding nothing but the weight of the air. Before Hunk's arm even dropped from its reaching position, a spurt of plastering globs of darken crimson blood cast harshly against Hunk's ridged gas mask, smearing into a dose of dispersing blood that ran over Hunk's visors. Not even a scream was heard, just a spray of warm blood, the blood of Ricco was all that was left of the young soldier. Perplexity manifested in Hunk's mind, unable to question what had just happened in front of his eyes. Solid shapes moved within the shadows of darkness spanning across the ceiling of the sewer duct with swinging movements too far away to make it out clear, only a nasty snarl of something large was left behind.

Hunk's palm scrapped against his blood-covered goggles, smearing the still warm blood into his own hand, before rubbing it off into the slimy water below him. As the blood swirled in the aggressive shaken water, Hunk gazed around the small square void, knowing that the only way out was the one that was several feet above his head. The walls were slicker than ice, with out an ounce of footing being giving from them. The room was empty expect for one thing. Lifting hands pried the stiff cadaver of the floating zombie from the gloomy waters and shrugged the body over to the wall, slowly building a ladder of dead bodies to reach his only way back.

"I should be all the way through it in about five." Cameron shouted down the ladder as he gave himself a rest from the burning torch that had been burning for the last fifteen minutes.

"Any longer and I think we are going to be spotted. So, everyone stay hot for now." SilverFang's voice was being pressured by impatience; things weren't going as he planned.

The struggling darkness bonded with the swift movements of pounding muscles as a pair of legs raced through it. Turning actions splattered with faulting hast as its travels were faced against the barrel of gun. Weaver's gun came against Hunk's chest as he spilled out from one of the breaching pipes.

"Who are you?" Weaver's spoke densely, not knowing if it was Hunk or Ricco coming back or if it was someone simply disguising themselves as one of them.

"It's Hunk." He bluntly said.

"Where's Ricco?" The words lashed out from Weaver's mouth not evening lowering his Mp-5 from its raised position.

"He's dead." Hunk's tongue spoke calmly.

"What do you mean he's dead?" Weaver belted back at Hunk's composed demeanor.

"Something came out of the darkness and killed him even before I knew there was something there. Whatever it was, it was large and inhuman." Hunk disappointingly addressed.

"Some sort of creature killed him? Maybe one of the B.O.Ws that was stolen from the Arklay Facility, but there was nothing in the briefing about a B.O.W. that has the ability to kill a man in a second without even being detected." Gouki stepped out from behind the two men, overhearing Weaver's shouting.

"Something doesn't add up. And if doesn't add up, then I don't trust it. And I don't trust you." Weaver alleged as he raised his gun away from Hunk's chest, letting the rookie go.

A clatter of bouncing of metal echoed like a bell that had been dropped into a well as the pressure cap had been thoroughly scored and removed. A vase of dim red light shimmered from the new opening at the top of the ladder; their doorway had finally been open.

"We're in." Cameron's chatter came over the radio, hushed and quiet.

Strobes of red light exposed through the darkness of the small closet like room. Cameron crept close to the ground, narrowly watching all the corners of the tight space. Solid layers of steel impacted into a weighty door meant to protect against fire and other hazards. The room was designed for one purpose, a way to escape something deadly.

SilverFang's helmet rose through the slot of the escape hatch as Cameron pressed against the door, unlatching it from its barred state. The door compressed with squeaking rust and scraping metal thrusting open. A hornet of buzzing noise and flickering lights clasped within the wide-open room as it was filled with several computers, metal counters, a wall of animal cages, apheresis machines, and several large machine design for systheising.

"It's a research lab. A small one at that." Gouki spoke as he walked into the room with the rest of the team, his hand grazing over several packets of research papers.

"Span out. I want to know what was going in here it may lead us to our target." SilverFang's mouth ticked out the words, watching for any clues. His fingers brushed against a random assortment of papers that laid on the top of a nearby counter, and just from a couple of words, SilverFang already knew what the people in this bunker where doing.

Visions of planted plastic sheets glared against one of the far walls. They were designed to be cages as well as viewing platforms, to see what their research did to living flesh. Through the clear plastic glass, shadows of darkness kept to themselves as they laid hidden in a single corner in the back of the cage. Hunk's eyes came closer to the viewing window; the darkness wasn't the only thing that was in the cage. A curl of ratty, unkempt fur gathered into a loose pile at the back of the cage, a contrast of frowning white teeth of an open mouth gave a sense of where its head was positioned in the gloom. The animal's body was shriveled, its fur and skin pulled close to its body. A froth of bubbling foam stemmed from the primate's mouth, but most of it had dried into a crust that lined its dehydrated lips. It had died a horrible death from infection and starvation.

"It seems that they were testing various viruses. There are cases full of Rabies, Yellow Fever, Influenza, even Ebola. It seems they were trying to strength these viruses to be used as biological weapons. All they are, are just a group of Bio-Terrorists, I don't think Umbrella really has anything to fear from them." Weaver spoke as he read through several research papers that he held in front of his face.

"It doesn't make sense. Why would they need a bunker in the middle of the Arklay Mountains to conduct this type of research?" Gouki's mouth marked with the question, he wasn't certain what this organization was up to and what they were planning to do.

"Their goal isn't of defense, but of offense. They were here to spy on Umbrella, not destroy them. They're conducting virus research for weaponry purposes, but by the looks of it, it is very primitive. They need to steal information from Umbrella to gain what they are looking for. Why would a parasite kill its host if it still needs to feed on it? With that said, we know their purpose, so we need to kept on the mission objective. We need to move." SilverFang's leadership passed through his lips, he was always able to validate a situation well before anyone else. He knew what he was dealing with from the start of the mission, SilverFang had seen hundreds of men do exactly the same thing and they always failed in the past. This company was no different.

"Out of the way, rookie!" Weaver's taught shoulder broke into Hunk's own; nearly doubling the young soldier over as Weaver passed by him.

Hunk could feel the tension that was the growing between him and the others. It was a rough feeling, like sandpaper being scrapped against an open and bleeding wound. Hunk knew it all stemmed from a lack of respect. For a soldier to have respect for another solider he had to be prove it to him, not being dead yet was the only thing that Hunk had accomplished so far and it seems that that's what all the other team members were hoping for. Hunk didn't care about his emotions or anyone else's; his skills were the only thing that he was worried about. And he knew that with the hate coming from his teammates, his skills would be put to a challenge and Hunk was looking forward to that.

Hunk traded into the well-lit hallway from the opening door of the laboratory as the team moved on in a single file fashion in front of him. He was the last one to leave, after being nearly knocked down by Weaver, taking his time to regroup. Hunk could get his revenge against Weaver easily, but he knew that it would have to wait. If Hunk started something now, he knew that he wouldn't be able to handle the rest of the team turning on him and it would disrupt the mission. It just wasn't needed right now.

The hallway that walked through was nothing more than a shine of white light as the overhead lights illumined the metal walls and the grated floor, giving a very sterile and clean feeling to the wide hallway, compared to the dark and messy laboratory they had just left. The hallway ended against pair of darkened metal doors that formed into the entrance of a large elevator. With a quick press of a single button, the doors hissed open.

"All right, everyone in the elevator. This floor doesn't contain anything that we need." SilverFang commanded as his team loaded into the elevator as he stood guard at the door.

Spiraling ropes and pulleys bared the weight of the heavy elevator as it was glided deeper into the complex before it came to a stop. With another hiss, the doors pressed opened quickly. They're eyes were welcomed against a bulky, reinforced steel blast door, one that spanned across the whole width of the hallway; it had been closed and sealed on purposed.

"We have to found a way through this door." SilverFang harped sharply from his tongue, knowing that this was an obstacle that they had to get through by any means.

"There's no way through it." Cameron jarred from his teeth has he rubbed his hand over the thick layers of plated steel, knowing that it would take weeks to even burn a dime-size hole into the reinforced door. His fingers grazed against it again, taking in the feeling of the freezing steel.

A startling ring of crumpling metal sounded from the door as something jarred against it. The reinforced steel riveted and shook as another tremendous hit came against it, buckling the layers of steel. There was something that wanted out more than the team wanted in and now the door that they wanted to get through was the only thing keeping them apart.


End file.
